Pyrenees Comparisons And Walking Advice Friday October 14, 2011
A wilderness is rich with liberty – William Wordsworth
We cannot do without the real thing, the real real thing; because without the real we die as if of thirst – J. M. Coetzee
I’ve been to the Pyrenees four times. The first was unsatisfactory, with bad autumnal weather in Lescun and very little walking. The last three trips contained a great deal of walking, mostly but not entirely along the HRP or Haute Route Pyrenees. In 2010 I had an hour long discussion with a Spanish chap, Jose, after he’d given me a ride up the track from Parzan to Punta Suelza, where the route then descends down to Viados. My plans were changing. When I’d arrived at Gavarnie the weather was so foul I got a lift all the way round to the Pineta valley in Spain with a German chap, Herbert, where the sun was shining. This entailed missing out part of the HRP I wanted to undertake, from Gavarnie to Heas, then Barroude, and then Parzan. Instead, I wild camped in a valley above Pineta, then walked down to Parzan along a different path. This change of plan meant I had three spare days to consider, and Jose assisted me with some ideas.
Jose said Perdido and Posets, which we could see where we stood, were not to be missed. Also Ordesa, Aneto, highest peak of all, and Ballibierna. His advice was get down as fast as I could to Benasque, and use it as a valley base. I did that, but not immediately. He advised that only following the HRP was too restricting, and I realised this was so. He’d been walking in the Pyrenees for about twenty years and noted some regions are better than others. I was starting to sense this, that my first walk from Lescun to Gavarnie was the best part of the HRP and possibly of the entire Pyrenees. Jose concurred with the general point, that the central part of the chain is the best. In the Atlantic west it’s cool, green and wet like the Lake District or Wales, with only modest Basques hills. In the Mediterranean east it’s dry, hot, and barren. Jose had undertaken walks, he said, which weren’t worth the effort. He wasn’t impressed with the idea of the HRP, but he then suggested walking part of a long distance route and spending time in a valley base – doing both – was probably the best approach. You walk according to your personality, he said, i.e. the Pyrenees have different characteristics and you can find whatever kind of experience you want. That kind of remark comes from a seasoned walker, who knows the qualities and moods of the hills.
I’m not a peak bagger. I’ve decided, for example, climbing Aneto doesn’t bother me too much because reputedly the view, although immense, doesn’t have much character. There are no obvious attractions: no peaks where the eye can notably linger, no shapely compositions which, if it’s me, prompts a photograph. The same applies with Perdido: photographs make it look rather barren and featureless, which was confirmed when I saw it looming above Ordesa. It’s a beautiful sight from the valley but a bleak prospect, I could see, if one were to scale its heights.
Posets however is another matter. In his books Kev Reynolds suggests it’s the most scenic Pyrenean peak, and I currently have no reason to disagree.
I also enjoyed the modest climb to Grande Fache, and Le Taillon. Le Petit Vignemale is very worthwhile (and easy) and the best non peak view I’ve experienced is the moment when you walk up from Candanchu and then reach Ibon De Escalar, then walk up to the col, turn the corner, and see Pic du Midi d’Osseau as the lovely centre piece of a vast and beautiful area. I felt I’d never before seen such a large expanse of planet earth. Although I’ve been to the Alps, which are higher, height does not necessarily translate into distant views.
I’m becoming then, a connoisseur of the Pyrenees. As with the Lake District and Wales (Scotland I don’t know so well) I’ve discovered that some hills, and some areas, are my definite favourites. In regard to the long distance path or valley base question, I suggest the former offers the best experience if it’s in the right area. My 2010 trip was less satisfying than my Lescun to Gavarnie trek, for that reason. I rested a little too much, spent too much time in the valleys, and didn’t enjoy the continuity (so much) of multi day accomplishment. When you get back home, the memories are different: you recall successive days across a large area like chapters of a book, compared to random short stories. My 2011 trip was different again when I walked in three different areas (Ordesa, Gavarnie to Parzan and then the Neouvielle Lakes), each with their own character, and in one instance with the need for five hours of hitching/waiting/road walking to connect from one place to another. Again, there was some satisfaction in covering three areas because it leaves you with a memory of connected chapters travelling through a long book: from A to B, from B to C, and from C to D.
Some people prefer Wales to the Lake District. I find Wales has an inferior aesthetic. It took me a few years before I began to appreciate Wales not entirely for the scenery, which is not as beautiful as the Lakes, but also for qualities of rugged peace: some parts don’t have proper tracks, and it’s not so busy and touristy as the Lakes. I suspect then, some people will warm to areas like the Neouvielle Lakes, Aigues Tortes, and the more barren parts of the Pyrenees further east. I found I wasn’t too keen on the Neouvielle region; I liked the idea of plentiful lakes but the reason they exist is because the area is granite. That means it’s hard, rocky, and rough; more like Wales, in that aesthetic respect, than the Lake District: although I use that comparison with caution, only insofar as it refers to the quality of rock, which is only one factor of geography and scenery.
If I were to give advice for a first Pyrenean trip it would be start at Lescun and follow the HRP to Gavarnie, with slight variation as you may feel inclined. It’s worth spending a day or two at Lescun, enjoying the camp site and the area, if you can restrain yourself from setting off. Pic d’Anie is a fine walk up through a forest, along a canyon-like valley, and then across the heights. If you want to extend your walking further Gavarnie to Heas and then Barroude is a rewarding section; you could finish by going down to Parzan for travel connections albeit that hitching there, the only immediate option, is precarious. Or you could go further still, proceeding to Viados, with access to Posets, and from there descend to Benasque which has connecting buses. That would be a magnificent first trip, with the lovely Posets its concluding finale.
I recommend Grande Fache above refuge Wallon, Le Petit Vignemale above Baysellance, Le Taillon above Gavarnie and, if you want to see more of Spain and Ordesa in particular, the connecting route through the Breche de Roland. The basis for all of this, which was my first long walk in 2009, is the HRP from Lescun to Gavarnie. When I went back in 2010, I considered walking the route again: there’s a particular pleasure in returning to an area you love, but I decided it’s a greater pleasure to explore new delights. The thrill of the first time is unique and unrepeatable. This year, 2011, I was filling in a few gaps (the HRP from Gavarnie and a previously considered trip to Ordesa), and making a new exploration of the Neouvielle region. Someday I may return for repeat walking and it will be the HRP from Lescun to Gavarnie with, if I have the time, the option of going further to Viados, climbing Posets from there, and descending the other side down to Benasque. I have a preference for the French side of the Pyrenees which tends to be greener and smoother i.e. less craggy and bouldery. I also have a smattering of French, sometimes enough for basic social conversation, which is fun, whereas I have almost no knowledge of Spanish.
Flights or connections to Lourdes or Toulouse are best for the above. Some people take overnight trains which can be good value if you book in advance, but that’s never appealed to me. Flight and trains to Barcelona are also an option, though if you walk the central Pyrenees region that would involve an overland journey of several hours. You can find local bus timetables on the internet. Trains and buses are generally clean, punctual, and better value than appalling British networks. Hitching, except with Parzan as I refer to above, is a good option: numerous times I’ve got a lift within minutes, but in France not Spain. There’s a basic food shop at Lescun, you can get down to Cauterets in two or three hours from refuge Wallon for more supplies, Gavarnie has a good supermarket, so does Parzan, and Benasque is a reasonable size town with plenty of shops, like Cauterets. I carry food supplies for three or possibly four days, mostly have evening meals in the mountain huts, and camp beside them. I’ve had a few nights in the huts – Viados, Portillon, Renclusa, Angel Orus – and it’s more comfortable in bad weather but with the risk you will have a terrible sleepless experience disturbed by snoring, talking, shuffling and the intimate proximity of strangers. This is no joke if you feel ill the next day with lack of sleep. Refuge food varies; it’s basic fare but it can be satisfying. If you’re vegetarian, like me, you’ll feel the strain when you try to get what you need at 2,500 metres. You may have to compromise and have an omelette or two for essential protein. In circumstances you can’t control, you have to accept available food if you want to survive. If I were lost in a desert for a few days I might have to eat dead birds or maggots. In that respect vegetarianism is a luxury I return to when my holiday is finished as with my bed, bath, and refrigerator. I draw the line at meat – if that were the only choice in Pyrenees huts I’d carry more food with me and pay a ridiculous price for a plate of pasta only. It’s very problematic. Eggs, for me, are very similar to meat; but I decided total rigidity wasn’t the best option.
I’ve used gas stoves in the Pyrenees, and you have to plan carefully where you will buy the canisters. You can get them in Toulouse, Cauterets, Lourdes, Gavarnie, and Benasque. This year, 2011, I reverted to meths which is how I started out in British hills. I bought the French alcool de bruler at a hardware store in Lourdes, one litre for about three euros, which lasted the entire trip with some to spare. I use a Caldera Cone which is the best meths system there is, because of its windproof efficiency. I’m very pleased with it. I understand it’s quite easy to find meths in France, more so than gas canisters, but I can’t comment on that other than with reference to Lourdes. If you have a digital camera take plenty of memory cards and charged batteries: it’s not worth the risk that you won’t be able to take precious photographs, because you cut down on rucksack weight.
Technically, the Pyrenees are about the same level as British hills but on a much bigger and higher scale. A walker once told me when she reached 3,000 metres she started to feel the effects of altitude. I wondered if I was the same, but I’ve decided my weakness and fatigue was because of insufficient food. The HRP undulates below and above 3,000 metres if you opt to climb a few summits, which I recommend. There are occasional challenging sections, usually highlighted in the guide books. If you slip from Crib Goch in Wales, or Striding Edge in the Lake District, it would be very nasty. If you slip from parts of the Pyrenean mountains, you will be dead. It’s that simple. And if you slip, for example, in the rough boulder area going down to Portillon from Soula, you will be badly hurt and in great danger: some Pyrenees walks are very remote, and you have to forget about emergency assistance from other people.
There are a few permanent snowfields and glaciers, which again are indicated in the guide books. The difficulty varies and so do personal feelings. In 2010 I walked the Gourgs Blancs glacier, Col Des Crabioues snowfield and snow gully up to Posets from Angel Orus wearing sandals, with Goretex socks for Col Des Crabioues. Descending Gourgs Blancs was quite tricky involving hands, knees and slithering, and walking poles were essential. Crampons would have helped, but then you have to carry them for the rest of your trip. I quite enjoyed the rapid descent of Col Des Crabioues that snow allows; if I’d slipped it wouldn’t have really been serious. But a walker from London was apprehensive about it, and he was wearing big heavy boots. Other areas are far more serious: the Vignemale and Aneto glaciers can’t be approached casually and you will need crampons, possibly an axe, and possibly a rope depending on the conditions.
In the French Pyrenees you mainly meet French people; the same point applies with regard to Spain. Some people speak of ‘walking in France’ or ‘walking in Spain’ but that’s meaningless to me: I just walk the Pyrenees according to their interest. Spanish huts are sometimes less accommodating if you want to camp beside them, but all you have to do is walk away a sufficient distance for your overnight camp – often referred to as a bivouac, whereas ‘camping’ designates resting in one place for multiple nights.
People are happy and friendly in the Pyrenees and you have lovely little encounters on the trail, or at the huts in the evening, or if you do any amount of hitching. Some people feel compelled to complete the entirety of walks but if I reach an arduous or boring road section I use my thumb, usually with great success. The GR10, GR11 and HRP paths are popular such that it’s unusual to be completely alone for long periods; there can be large crowds congregating at the huts and you may see the same people from the previous night. Summer weather tends to be hot and stable, although wintry conditions are always possible. I take a slight risk in that respect with only three season clothes and sandals rather than boots, which in usual summer conditions are excellent. I have heard of hail stones the size of golf balls, and late summer storms are formidable and dangerous. I’ve been at the edge of one, and finished my 2009 walk with a tremendous storm from where I’d just descended. The air was thick at Luz St Sauveur, the odd but convenient camp site in the heart of the town. Suddenly the rain came down and the thunder started up at Gavarnie, which was slightly unnerving even at a distance. But when speaking of storms to an Italian party I obtained a different impression from the usual advice. Their leader had been walking the Pyrenees for ten years, always at the end of august, and had never experienced a storm. It’s possible ‘the summer Pyrenean storm’ is a little mythologised but you have to understand the dangers when they occur: get down from the heights and exposed ridges, and pack away all metal implements such as walking poles.
The Pyrenees represent a further walking dimension compared to Britain; they are approximately three times the height and cover a large area stretching from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The 1:50,000 maps are best, easily obtained from Amazon. I recommend guide books by Kev Reynolds and Ton Joosten, which are the standard works. Navigation is technically about the same as British hills; although I have been lost a few times it was not especially serious. I don’t use GPS and it’s not really necessary, but as with British hills in bad conditions and zero visibility GPS is the only means of useful navigation.
You can walk the entire mountains from west to east or the reverse, for which six weeks seems to be an average time. I’m a slow walker and if I did it, I’d allow eight weeks. Jose and I agreed though, that needs a significant effort and inevitably crosses uninteresting terrain. Better to pick the best parts, we agreed, and return two times, three times, or more.
The Pyrenees for me are ideal mountains: big, beautiful, usually with good summer weather, and relatively accessible in terms of transport and cost. They even sound beautiful – Pyrenees. However some parts are better than others and this is worth bearing in mind for a first trip, or any other.